PC Brigade

Is not this the carpenter, the son of Mary and brother of James and Joses and Judas and Simon? And are not his sisters here with us?” And they took offence at him. Mark 6:3

Jesus was in His home town, and had a real problem being accepted there as a prophet, let alone the promised Messiah. It wasn’t the Pharisees speaking, these were the ordinary folks in the town, the men and women who knew him from boyhood. They had seen Him perform miracles, and still they did not believe. The text says they were offended!


How often do we hear those words today? It seems that just about every minority group shout the words, “I’m offended” and it can be about anything. It gets attention, and is the easy way out, but as Jesus followers, we should not be too concerned about the Politically Correct brigade, after all Jesus wasn’t.


Instead, let us be a different PC group of our own as we Present Christ by our lifestyle in thought, word and deed. We should not be surprised that some of our friends and peers will be offended, just as it was in Jesus’ day, but take encouragement from the wonderful words spoken and written by the Apostle Peter, after all he knew what he was talking about!


Therefore, to you who believe, He is precious; but to those who are disobedient, the stone which the builders rejected has become the chief cornerstone, and a stone of stumbling and a rock of offense. They stumble, being disobedient to the word, to which they also were appointed. But you are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, His own special people, that you may proclaim the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvellous light; who once were not a people but are now the people of God, who had not obtained mercy but now have obtained mercy.
1 Peter 2:7-10

Peace?

Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid. John 14:27

Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” John 14:6

At one end of the scale, we have the Pakistani Religious Body (Council of Islamic Ideology) which says men should be allowed to 'Lightly Beat' their wives (yes, that’s plural). At the other end of the scale we have feuding Muslims who kill each other, usually Sunni instigated, and who also have a deep hatred of other Muslims, Christians and Jews. In fact hatred to death extends to the infidel, ie anyone who is NOT a Muslim. Have you watched the news bulletins? These deaths are counted in their thousands, not singly. On top of that, they do not accept that the nation of Israel has the right to exist. How much hatred does that show, and yet we, as a nation, and individually, make allowances and excuses for them. After all, we are told Islam is a religion of peace and our politicians line up to agree and sympathise. The words of an old saying come to mind, “There are none so blind as those who will not see.”

Let’s have a look at some of the other practices of this ‘peaceful’ religion. Let me be clear, these practices are not practiced by all Muslims all the time, but they ARE all Muslim beliefs practiced and authorised by their holy book, the Quran also known as the Koran which ALL Muslims believe in and accept fully.

• Sharia Law will authorise a thief's hand be cut off for stealing.

• Young girls beaten to the point of death for listening to the ‘wrong music’

• The kidnap of young girls to sell as slaves, or ‘wives’ to Islamic fighters

• A belief that the infidel can be beheaded

• Muslims will kill other Muslims who are of a different branch or sect

• Believe in the elimination of Israel and its people from the face of the earth

• Believe in setting up a caliphate where Islam rules completely in law and religion

• Enforce Sharia Law to supercede the laws of any/every land

• Deface and burn down churches and synagogues

• Destroy ancient religious relics if not Islamic

• Support so called honour killings

• Believe that girls should not be educated

• Martyrdom ‘guarantees’ paradise

Whenever a nation is abused by Muslims (sometimes called Islamic extremists, but they are one and the same) and many people are murdered and maimed in the name of Allah, our politicians say “We are at war”. Really? It doesn’t look like it, and the murdering Muslims know it! There are no mass demonstrations by ‘ordinary Muslims’ protesting about these barbaric practices. I suggest they don’t need to protest publicly because there are enough infidel apologists who will speak up on their behalf, and defend them. Is it possible that our leaders and politicians know the true face of Islam, and don’t know what to do or say out of fear?

We are getting that we don’t like to say anything about the ‘religion of peace’, after all we don’t want to offend anyone. Especially if they want to kill us. A definition is needed because meaning is lost. “Islamophobia” by definition is the fear of Islam. As followers of Jesus Christ, we are NOT afraid of Islam, or Muslim followers, and we should be free to speak the truth about this barbaric, abusive, warring, religion followed in fear by their own adherents. The politically correct politicians don’t want this openness, and the many thousands of people who don’t care about religion or faith, let it all wash over them as long as they are not affected.

The following poem was penned by Pastor Martin Niemoller about the Nazi ‘Final Solution’:

First they came for the Socialists, and I did not speak out—

Because I was not a Socialist.

Then they came for the Trade Unionists, and I did not speak out—

Because I was not a Trade Unionist.

Then they came for the Jews, and I did not speak out—

Because I was not a Jew.

Then they came for me—and there was no one left to speak for me.

I think it’s time to add the lines….

Then they came for the Christians, and I did not speak out—

And I was a Christian.

A Tale Of Two Christmases

I love Christmas, with the glitter, tinsel, artificial trees all lit up, santa in the mall, the smell of cinnamon candles, and the laughter of children, wide eyed at the wonder and magic of gifts received for no other reason than the love of parents, aunts, uncles, brothers, sisters and loved ones. Then there is the best part for me. The gathering around the family table to enjoy the traditional dinner of turkey and all the trimmings. That’s my Christmas, but sadly, it is not the Christmas of many. But above and before all of this festive fun, is the realisation that the reason for the season is the virgin birth of the Saviour of the World into a lowly stable manger in Bethlehem, as prophesied.

Then there is the other side of Christmas, mainly peddled by businesses who want your money, and for those 30 pieces of silver, promise a good time, in fact the best time you ever had by maxing out your credit card. Christmas has become something else. The media in the UK, and in our other ‘civilised’ western cultures, warn against hedonism. Of course they don’t call it that, so they give out other more PC warnings which are for your own benefit.

Police having to increase their patrols, on the lookout for drivers who take a chance and drink to excess before getting behind the wheel, putting their own lives at risk but also those younger innocents. The medical profession warning about the risks of spiked drinks, especially putting young party women, out for a good time ‘at risk’, and all that entails. Domestic violence hits a high, due to increased alcohol intake. Young drunken men and girls, out for a ‘good time’ at all and any cost, without a thought for the consequences to them or any others.

What have we, the civilised societies, done to the season of Christmas? It goes deeper than just being an expensive time of year. It goes to the heart of our humanity, by trading the baby in the manger for a lifestyle which is as far away from the meaning of Christmas as you can get. We have changed the definition of the word ‘party’ to a drunken orgy, instead of a celebration of goodness, based on the life and example of the Son of God. I ask again, what have we done with Christmas, and is it for our good?